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January 4
Events *46 BC – Julius Caesar defeats Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina. * 871 – Battle of Reading: Æthelred of Wessex fights, and is defeated by, a Danish invasion army. *1490 – Anne of Brittany announces that all those who would ally with the King of France will be considered guilty of the crime of lèse-majesté. *1642 – King Charles I of England sends soldiers to arrest members of Parliament, commencing England's slide into civil war. *1649 – English Civil War: The Rump Parliament votes to put Charles I on trial. *1717 – The Netherlands, Great Britain, and France sign the Triple Alliance. *1762 – Great Britain enters the Seven Years' War against Spain and Naples. *1798 – Constantine Hangerli arrives in Bucharest, Wallachia, as its new Prince, invested by the Ottoman Empire. *1847 – Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government. *1853 – After having been kidnapped and sold into slavery in the American South, Solomon Northup regains his freedom; his memoir Twelve Years a Slave later becomes a national bestseller. *1854 – The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the Samarang. *1863 – The New Apostolic Church is established in Hamburg, Germany. *1865 – The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters near Wall Street in New York City. *1878 – Russo-Turkish War (1877–78): Sofia is liberated from Ottoman rule and becomes capital of Liberated Bulgaria in 1879. *1884 – The Fabian Society is founded in London, England, United Kingdom. *1889 – The Oklahoma Land Run opens two million acres of unused Oklahoma Territory to first serve first come settlers on April 22. *1896 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. *1903 – Topsy, an elephant, is electrocuted by the owners of Luna Park, Coney Island. The Edison film company shoots the film Electrocuting an Elephant of Topsy's death. *1912 – The Scout Association is incorporated throughout the British Empire by royal charter. *1944 – World War II: Operation Carpetbagger, involving the dropping of arms and supplies to resistance fighters in Europe, begins. *1948 – Burma gains its independence from the United Kingdom. *1951 – Korean War: Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul. *1955 – The Greek National Radical Union is formed by Konstantinos Karamanlis. *1958 – Sputnik 1 falls to Earth from orbit. *1959 – Luna 1 becomes the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon. *1966 – A military coup takes place in Upper Volta (later Burkina Faso), dissolving the National Parliament and leading to a new national constitution. *1970 – The 7.1 Mw Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). Between 10,000–15,621 were killed and 26,783 were injured. *1972 – Rose Heilbron becomes the first female judge to sit at the Old Bailey in London, England. *1974 – United States President Richard Nixon refuses to hand over materials subpoenaed by the Senate Watergate Committee. *1976 – The Troubles: The Ulster Volunteer Force shoots dead six Irish Catholic civilians in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The next day, gunmen shoot dead ten Protestant civilians nearby in retaliation. *1987 – The Maryland train collision: An Amtrak train en route to Boston from Washington, D.C., collides with Conrail engines in Chase, Maryland, killing 16 people. *1989 – Second Gulf of Sidra incident: A pair of Libyan MiG-23 "Floggers" are shot down by a pair of US Navy F-14 Tomcats during an air-to-air confrontation. *1990 – In Pakistan's deadliest train accident an overloaded passenger train collides with an empty freight train, resulting in 307 deaths and 700 injuries. *1998 – Wilaya of Relizane massacres in Algeria: Over 170 are killed in three remote villages. * 1998 – A massive ice storm hits eastern Canada and the northeastern United States, continuing through January 10 and causing widespread destruction. *1999 – Former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura is sworn in as governor of Minnesota. *2004 – ''Spirit'', a NASA Mars rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC. * 2004 – Mikheil Saakashvili is elected President of Georgia following the November 2003 Rose Revolution. *2006 – Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel suffers a second, apparently more serious stroke. His authority is transferred to acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. *2007 – The 110th United States Congress convenes, electing Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the House in U.S. history. *2013 – A gunman kills eight people in a house-to-house rampage in Kawit, the Philippines. Births *1077 – Emperor Zhezong of China (d. 1100) *1334 – Amadeus VI, Count of Savoy (d. 1383) *1581 – James Ussher, Irish archbishop and historian (d. 1656) *1643 – Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician (d. 1727) *1664 – Lars Roberg, Swedish physician and academic (d. 1742) *1672 – Hugh Boulter, English-Irish archbishop (d. 1742) *1710 – Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Italian composer, violinist, and organist (d. 1736) *1720 – Johann Friedrich Agricola, German organist and composer (d. 1774) *1785 – Jacob Grimm, German philologist, mythologist, and author (d. 1863) *1809 – Louis Braille, French educator, invented Braille (d. 1852) *1813 – Isaac Pitman, English linguist and educator (d. 1897) *1832 – George Tryon, English admiral (d. 1893) *1838 – General Tom Thumb, American circus performer (d. 1883) *1839 – Carl Humann, German archaeologist, architect, and engineer (d. 1896) *1848 – Katsura Tarō, Japanese general and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1913) *1858 – Carter Glass, American publisher and politician, 47th United States Secretary of the Treasury (d. 1946) *1864 – Clara Emilia Smitt, Swedish author (d. 1928) *1869 – Tommy Corcoran, American baseball player and umpire (d. 1960) *1870 – Percy Pitt, English organist and conductor (d. 1932) *1872 – Ottilie Sutro, American pianist (d. 1970) * 1872 – Albert Tyler, American pole vaulter and educator (d. 1945) *1874 – Josef Suk, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1935) *1877 – Marsden Hartley, American painter and poet (d. 1943) *1878 – A. E. Coppard, English poet and author (d. 1957) * 1878 – Rosa Grünberg, Swedish actress and soprano (d. 1960) * 1878 – Augustus John, Welsh painter and illustrator (d. 1961) *1881 – Wilhelm Lehmbruck, German sculptor (d. 1919) * 1881 – Patrick Ryan, Irish-American hammer thrower (d. 1964) *1882 – Aristarkh Lentulov, Russian painter and set designer (d. 1943) *1883 – Max Eastman, American author and poet (d. 1969) * 1883 – Johanna Westerdijk, Dutch pathologist and academic (d. 1961) *1884 – Guy Pène du Bois, American painter, critic, and educator (d. 1958) *1889 – M. Patanjali Sastri, Indian lawyer and jurist, 2nd Chief Justice of India (d. 1963) *1890 – Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, American publisher, founded DC Comics (d. 1965) *1891 – Edward Brooker, English-Australian sergeant and politician, 31st Premier of Tasmania (d. 1948) *1892 – María Díaz Cortés, Spanish super-centenarian (d. 2009) *1894 – Manuel de Abreu, Brazilian physician and poet (d. 1962) *1895 – Leroy Grumman, American engineer and businessman, co-founded Grumman Aeronautical Engineering Co. (d. 1982) *1896 – Everett Dirksen, American politician (d. 1969) * 1896 – Jørgen Løvset, Norwegian gynecologist and academic (d. 1981) * 1896 – André Masson, French painter and illustrator (d. 1987) * 1896 – Arnold Susi, Estonian lawyer and politician, Estonian Minister of Education (d. 1968) *1900 – James Bond, American ornithologist and zoologist (d. 1989) *1901 – C. L. R. James, Trinidadian journalist and theorist (d. 1989) *1902 – John McCone, American businessman and politician, 6th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 1991) *1905 – Sterling Holloway, American actor and singer (d. 1992) *1910 – Arthur Villeneuve, Canadian painter (d. 1990) *1912 – Noro Morales, Puerto Rican-American pianist and bandleader (d. 1964) *1913 – Malietoa Tanumafili II, Samoan ruler (d. 2007) *1914 – Herman Franks, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 2009) *1916 – Slim Gaillard, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Slim & Slam) (d. 1991) * 1916 – Lionel Newman, American pianist and composer (d. 1989) * 1916 – Robert Parrish, American actor and director (d. 1995) *1920 – William Colby, American intelligence officer, 10th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 1996) *1922 – Mart Port, Estonian architect (d. 2012) * 1922 – Frank Wess, American saxophonist and flute player (d. 2013) *1923 – Tito Rodríguez, Puerto Rican-American singer-songwriter and television host (d. 1973) *1924 – Sebastian Kappen, Indian priest and theologian (d. 1993) * 1924 – Marianne Werner, German shot putter *1925 – Veikko Hakulinen, Finnish skier and technician (d. 2003) *1927 – Paul Desmarais, Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 2013) * 1927 – Barbara Rush, American actress *1929 – Günter Schabowski, German journalist and politician (d. 2015) *1930 – Sorrell Booke, American actor and director (d. 1994) * 1930 – Don Shula, American football player and coach *1931 – William Deane, Australian judge and politician, 22nd Governor-General of Australia * 1931 – Coşkun Özarı, Turkish footballer and coach (d. 2011) *1932 – Clint Hill, American secret service agent and author * 1932 – Roman Personov, Russian physicist and academic (d. 2002) * 1932 – Carlos Saura, Spanish director and screenwriter *1933 – Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, American author *1934 – Hellmuth Karasek, Czech-German journalist, author, and critic (d. 2015) * 1934 – Rudolf Schuster, Slovak politician, 2nd President of Slovakia *1935 – Walter Mahlendorf, German sprinter * 1935 – Floyd Patterson, American boxer (d. 2006) *1937 – Grace Bumbry, American operatic soprano * 1937 – Dyan Cannon, American actress, director, producer, and screenwriter *1940 – Gao Xingjian, Chinese-French author, playwright, and critic, Nobel Prize laureate * 1940 – Helmut Jahn, German-American architect, designed Liberty Place and Messeturm * 1940 – Brian Josephson, Welsh physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate *1941 – George P. Cosmatos, Italian-Canadian director and screenwriter (d. 2005) * 1941 – Kalpnath Rai, Indian politician (d. 1999) * 1941 – K. Thurairetnasingam, Sri Lankan civil servant and politician *1942 – Bolaji Akinyemi, Nigerian political scientist, academic, and politician * 1942 – John McLaughlin, English guitarist and songwriter *1943 – Doris Kearns Goodwin, American historian and author * 1943 – Hwang Sok-yong, South Korean author and educator * 1943 – Priit Vesilind, Estonian-American author and photographer *1944 – Angela Harris, Baroness Harris of Richmond, English politician *1945 – Richard R. Schrock, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate *1946 – Arthur Conley, American singer-songwriter (d. 2003) *1947 – Chris Cutler, American-English drummer and songwriter * 1947 – Marie-Thérèse Letablier, French sociologist and academic * 1947 – Rick Stein, English chef and author *1948 – Kostas Davourlis, Greek footballer (d. 1992) * 1948 – Cissé Mariam Kaïdama Sidibé, Malian civil servant and politician, Prime Minister of Mali *1949 – Mick Mills, English footballer and manager *1950 – Khondakar Ashraf Hossain, Bangladesh poet and academic (d. 2013) *1951 – Bob Black, American author and activist * 1951 – Barbara Cochran, American skier *1953 – Norberto Alonso, Argentinian footballer *1954 – Tina Knowles, American fashion designer, founded House of Deréon *1955 – Cecilia Conrad, Norwegian economist and academic *1956 – Nels Cline, American guitarist and songwriter (Wilco) * 1956 – Ann Magnuson, American actress and performance artist * 1956 – Zehava Gal-On, Israeli politician * 1956 – Sarojini Sahoo, Indian journalist, author, and poet * 1956 – Bernard Sumner, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer *1957 – Patty Loveless, American singer-songwriter and guitarist * 1957 – Gurdas Maan, Indian singer-songwriter *1958 – Matt Frewer, American-Canadian actor * 1958 – Gary Jones, Welsh-Canadian actor and screenwriter * 1958 – Julian Sands, English actor *1959 – Vanity, Canadian-American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress (d. 2016) *1960 – Michael Stipe, American singer-songwriter and producer *1961 – Sidney Green, American basketball player and coach *1962 – Joe Kleine, American basketball player and coach * 1962 – André Rouvoet, Dutch educator and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands * 1962 – Peter Steele, American singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2010) *1963 – Dave Foley, Canadian comedian, actor, director, and producer * 1963 – Till Lindemann, German singer-songwriter *1964 – Dot Jones, American shot putter and actress *1965 – Yvan Attal, French actor and director * 1965 – Guy Forget, French tennis player * 1965 – Beth Gibbons, English singer-songwriter * 1965 – Craig Revel Horwood, Australian-English dancer, choreographer, and director * 1965 – Julia Ormond, English actress and producer *1966 – Deana Carter, American singer-songwriter and guitarist *1967 – David Berman, American singer-songwriter * 1967 – Johnny Nelson, English boxer and sportscaster * 1967 – David Toms, American golfer and philanthropist *1969 – Kees van Wonderen, Dutch footballer and manager *1970 – Chris Kanyon, American wrestler (d. 2010) *1971 – Junichi Kakizaki, Japanese botanist and sculptor *1973 – Frank Høj, Danish cyclist * 1973 – Harmony Korine, American director, producer, and screenwriter *1974 – Danilo Hondo, German cyclist *1975 – Shane Carwin, American mixed martial artist and wrestler *1976 – Benoît Joachim, Luxembourgish cyclist *1978 – Dominik Hrbatý, Slovakian tennis player * 1978 – Mai Meneses, Spanish singer-songwriter and guitarist *1979 – Shergo Biran, German footballer * 1979 – Tristan Gommendy, French race car driver *1980 – Miguel Monteiro, Portuguese footballer * 1980 – Yaroslav Popovych, Ukrainian cyclist *1982 – Kang Hye-jung, South Korean actress and singer * 1982 – Richard Logan, English footballer * 1982 – Lucie Škrobáková, Czech hurdler *1985 – Gökhan Gönül, Turkish footballer * 1985 – Al Jefferson, American basketball player *1986 – Younès Kaboul, French footballer * 1986 – Andrei Krauchanka, Belarusian decathlete * 1986 – James Milner, English footballer * 1986 – Hsieh Su-wei, Taiwanese tennis player *1987 – Kay Voser, Swiss footballer *1988 – Anestis Argyriou, Greek footballer * 1988 – Maximilian Riedmüller, German footballer *1989 – Graham Rahal, American race car driver *1990 – Iago Falque, Spanish footballer * 1990 – Toni Kroos, German footballer * 1990 – Alberto Paloschi, Italian footballer *1992 – Kris Bryant, American baseball player *1994 – Viktor Axelsen, Danish badminton player Deaths * 874 – Hasan al-Askari, Saudi Arabian 11th of the Twelve Imams (b. 846) *1248 – Sancho II of Portugal (b. 1207) *1428 – Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (b. 1370) *1564 – Hosokawa Ujitsuna, Japanese commander (b. 1514) *1584 – Tobias Stimmer, Swiss painter and illustrator (b. 1539) *1695 – François-Henri de Montmorency, duc de Luxembourg, French general (b. 1628) *1752 – Gabriel Cramer, Swiss mathematician and physicist (b. 1704) *1761 – Stephen Hales, English clergyman and physiologist (b. 1677) *1782 – Ange-Jacques Gabriel, French architect, designed École Militaire (b. 1698) *1786 – Moses Mendelssohn, German philosopher and theologian (b. 1729) *1804 – Charlotte Lennox, English author and poet (b. 1730) *1821 – Elizabeth Ann Seton, American nun and saint (b. 1774) *1825 – Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (b. 1751) *1863 – Roger Hanson, American general (b. 1827) *1874 – Thomas Gregson, English-Australian lawyer and politician, 2nd Premier of Tasmania (b. 1798) *1877 – Cornelius Vanderbilt, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1794) *1880 – Anselm Feuerbach, German painter and educator (b. 1829) *1882 – John William Draper, English-American physician, chemist, and photographer (b. 1811) *1883 – Antoine Chanzy, French general (b. 1823) *1891 – Antoine Labelle, Canadian priest (b. 1833) *1896 – Joseph Hubert Reinkens, German bishop and academic (b. 1821) *1901 – Nikolaos Gyzis, Greek painter and academic (b. 1842) *1904 – Anna Winlock American astronomer and academic (b. 1857) *1910 – Léon Delagrange, French pilot and sculptor (b. 1873) *1912 – Clarence Dutton, American geologist and soldier (b. 1841) *1919 – Georg von Hertling, German academic and politician, 7th Chancellor of the German Empire (b. 1843) *1920 – Benito Pérez Galdós, Spanish author and playwright (b. 1843) *1924 – Alfred Grünfeld, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1852) *1927 – Süleyman Nazif, Turkish poet and civil servant (b. 1870) *1931 – Art Acord, American actor and stuntman (b. 1890) * 1931 – Louise, Princess Royal of England (b. 1867) * 1931 – Mohammad Ali Jouhar, Indian journalist, activist, and scholar (b. 1878) *1940 – Flora Finch, English-American actress and producer (b. 1867) *1941 – Henri Bergson, French philosopher and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1859) *1943 – Jerzy Iwanow-Szajnowicz, Greek-Polish swimmer and water polo player (b. 1911) *1944 – Kaj Munk, Danish playwright and pastor (b. 1898) *1960 – Albert Camus, French novelist, philosopher, and journalist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1913) *1961 – Erwin Schrödinger, Austrian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1887) *1962 – Hans Lammers, German jurist and politician (b. 1879) *1965 – T. S. Eliot, American-English poet, playwright, and critic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1888) *1967 – Donald Campbell, English race car driver and sailor (b. 1921) *1969 – Paul Chambers, American bassist and composer (b. 1935) *1970 – Jean Étienne Valluy, French general (b. 1899) *1975 – Carlo Levi, Italian painter, author, and activist (b. 1902) *1976 – Epameinondas Thomopoulos, Greek painter and illustrator (b. 1878) *1985 – Brian Horrocks, Indian-English general (b. 1895) * 1985 – Lovro von Matačić, Croatian conductor and composer (b. 1899) *1986 – Christopher Isherwood, English-American author and academic (b. 1904) * 1986 – Phil Lynott, Irish singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (b. 1949) *1988 – Lily Laskine, French harp player (b. 1893) *1990 – Harold Eugene Edgerton, American engineer and academic (b. 1903) * 1990 – Henry Bolte, Australian sergeant and politician, 38th Premier of Victoria (b. 1908) *1994 – Marie Orav, Estonian chess player (b. 1911) * 1994 – R. D. Burman, Indian singer-songwriter (b. 1939) *1995 – Eduardo Mata, Mexican conductor and composer (b. 1942) * 1995 – Sol Tax, American anthropologist and academic (b. 1907) *1996 – Ramón Vinay, Chilean-Mexican tenor and actor (b. 1911) *1997 – Harry Helmsley, American businessman (b. 1909) *1998 – John Gary, American singer-songwriter (b. 1932) * 1998 – Mae Questel, American actress (b. 1908) *1999 – Iron Eyes Cody, American actor and stuntman (b. 1904) *2000 – Spyros Markezinis, Greek lawyer and politician, 170th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1909) * 2000 – Tom Fears, Mexican-American football player and coach (b. 1922) *2001 – Les Brown, American bandleader and composer (b. 1912) *2003 – Hanno Drechsler, German academic and politician, Mayor of Marburg (b. 1931) * 2003 – Sabine Ulibarrí, American poet and critic (b. 1919) * 2003 – Yfrah Neaman, Lebanese-English violinist (b. 1923) *2004 – Brian Gibson, English director and screenwriter (b. 1944) * 2004 – Jake Hess, American singer (b. 1927) * 2004 – Joan Aiken, English author (b. 1924) * 2004 – John Toland, American historian and author (b. 1912) *2005 – Bud Poile, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (b. 1924) * 2005 – Frank Harary, American mathematician and academic (b. 1921) * 2005 – Humphrey Carpenter, English radio host and author (b. 1946) * 2005 – Robert Heilbroner, American economist and historian (b. 1919) *2006 – Irving Layton, Romanian-Canadian poet and academic (b. 1912) * 2006 – Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Emirati politician, 1st Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates (b. 1946) * 2006 – Milton Himmelfarb, American sociographer, author, and academic (b. 1918) *2007 – Helen Hill, American director and producer (b. 1970) * 2007 – Lewis Hodges, English air marshal and pilot (b. 1918) * 2007 – Steve Krantz, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1923) * 2007 – Marais Viljoen, South African politician, 5th State President of South Africa (b. 1915) * 2007 – Sandro Salvadore, Italian footballer and manager (b. 1939) * 2007 – Jan Schröder, Dutch cyclist (b. 1941) *2008 – Xavier Chamorro Cardenal, Nicaraguan journalist (b. 1932) * 2008 – Yannis Tamtakos, Greek activist (b. 1908) *2009 – Gert Jonke, Austrian poet, playwright, and author (b. 1946) *2010 – Johan Ferrier, Surinamese educator and politician, 1st President of Suriname (b. 1910) * 2010 – Tsutomu Yamaguchi, Japanese engineer (b. 1916) *2011 – Coen Moulijn, Dutch footballer (b. 1937) * 2011 – Mick Karn, Cypriot-English bass player and songwriter (b. 1958) * 2011 – Dick King-Smith English author (b. 1922) * 2011 – Gerry Rafferty, Scottish singer-songwriter (b. 1947) * 2011 – Salmaan Taseer, Pakistani businessman and politician, 26th Governor of Punjab, Pakistan (b. 1944) *2012 – Eve Arnold, American photographer and journalist (b. 1912) * 2012 – Kerry McGregor, Scottish singer-songwriter and actress (b. 1974) * 2012 – Rod Robbie, English-Canadian architect, designed the Canadian Pavilion and Rogers Centre (b. 1928) *2013 – Yevgeny Pepelyaev, Russian colonel and pilot (b. 1918) * 2013 – Anwar Shamim, Pakistani general (b. 1931) * 2013 – Zoran Žižić, Montenegrin politician, 4th Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (b. 1951) *2014 – Jean Metellus, Haitian neurologist, author, poet, and playwright (b. 1937) *2015 – Pino Daniele, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1955) * 2015 – Chitresh Das, Indian dancer and choreographer (b. 1944) *2016 – Michel Galabru, French actor and playwright (b. 1922) * 2016 – S. H. Kapadia, Indian lawyer, judge, and politician, 38th Chief Justice of India (b. 1947) Holidays and observances * Christian feast day: ** Angela of Foligno ** Elizabeth Ann Seton ** January 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) * The eleventh of the Twelve Days of Christmas. (Western Christianity) * Chōna-hajimeshiki at Tsurugaoka Hachimangū. (Kamakura, Japan) * Day of the Fallen against the Colonial Repression (Angola) * Day of the Martyrs (Democratic Republic of the Congo) * Hwinukan mukee (Okinawa Islands, Japan) * Independence Day (Myanmar), celebrates the independence of Myanmar from the United Kingdom in 1948. * Ogoni Day (Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People) * World Braille Day External links * BBC: On This Day * * On This Day in Canada Category:Days of the year Category:January